backyardmissionary

I designed and put together the website for Brighton Reticulation today.
I don’t know how useful it will be, but for a small hosting fee and a little time invested in design it might well be worth it. My hunch is that every little bit helps.
I have heard it said that if any trade worker […]

I don’t think I actually know anyone who would sign up to the nonsense called prosperity gospel. It is an extreme abberation of biblical teaching suggesting that Jesus will make us happy, prosperous and all will be well.
I happened across this clip today on Purgatorio where John Piper takes it in a totally opposite direction. […]

As my recent post on the Waifs/John Butler concert may have shown, I am not into music in a big way, but I was a Larry Norman fan. As a teenager his songs were provocative, prophetic and often on the edge. He was a Christian rock and roller when it wasn’t cool to be one.

Rodney […]

We’re off to the wheatbelt area for the weekend to visit friends.
Looking forward to it - and also looking forward to a few weekends at home in the month ahead!

After his year in the UK among the Crowded House, Steve is asking some excellent questions about the way in which teaching and preaching functions in churches.
The normal theory is that ‘good teaching’ makes better Christians but Steve says:
“But as I look around I find myself in somewhat of a quandary. If good biblical teaching […]

Ok so this is American, but given our tendency to mindlessly follow along its maybe a picture of what is to come in Oz…
These are excerpts from the Barna report - with the full story here.
“For decades, American Christians, who comprise more than four of our every five adults, assumed they had one legitimate way […]

Ok, I’m back to doing some reflecting on God Next Door. Chapter 3 looks at the impact of mobility on neighbourhoods – the ability people have and the associated practice of regularly moving house and not staying anywhere for the longer term.
We certainly are a very mobile lot these days, hence Alvin Tofflers’ reference to […]

We had a great weekend with the two different Forge intensives, but today I am feeling the effects. Phil McCredden was over to help us launch ‘Re-imagine’ and after a full day of seminar on Friday we drove to Busselton and back on Saturday followed by the Sunday of Forge and church that evening in […]

Occasionally people come along who fit in the category of ’statesmen’, leaders of note who by virtue of character and moral authority stand head and shoulders above the crowd.
Noel Vose is one of those people and I had the privilege of enjoying lunch at his home today. Noel was the founding principal of the […]

I was meeting with a friend today who is without question one of the most gifted and godly leaders I know. He leads a church community, but is currently questioning what that means, and how leadership ought to look if we genuinely believe that Jesus is the head of the church. (Is that a nice […]

Then what else might we need to re-consider?…
NT Wright debunks the myth that you go to heaven after death and it is the ultimate reality. Try preaching that on Sunday…
I was in a church recently where the pastor did. As I wandered in the crowd afterwards a few people expressed concern at the wayward sermon. […]

While I didn’t get to any of the events held around the country, this was a significant day in our history, when we apologised to the stolen generation of aboriginal people for the wrongs we did to them. Great to see it finally happen and very moving to watch.
However, the report on Channel 7 news […]

Looks like all of our stuff ups in the world’s most isolated city are now on display for the world to see.

This site has the potential to be very funny, but it hasn’t quite cracked it yet…
A few more really bad gaffs ought to get us there!

I was hoping to see Atonement before writing my thoughts on ‘Kite Runner’, as it seems both films are centred on the same theme - that of making amends for wrongs done.
I really enjoyed the Kite Runner novel and the movie didn’t disappoint either. Its a great story of friendship, struggle and redemption. Little Hassan […]

I saw this pic on Mark’s blog and liked it.
Its the road to Wagin (near where he works) and where I worked in my first year of teaching. Its a pretty classic picture of the golden tones of the wheat belt over summer set against the impending storm.
Very Aussie indeed!

Come on admit it… you didn’t think it was possible!
No, its not a video of me from last Sunday, but it is both funny and disturbing. It’s a YouTube of an independent Baptist, KJV-Only preacher who is speaking about the text that uses the phrase ”him that pisseth against the wall.”
So here it is, from […]

This is a gem - 15 minutes of quality input from David Fitch on ‘missional orders in the suburbs’. (And this post explains it also)
Thanks to Mike for the tip.

Today I spoke at the induction of Ryan Harding, the youth pastor at Quinns Baptist Church. Over the week I spent a fair bit of time reflecting on what I would say to a youth pastor, as one who has been there done that and who has spent a lot of time around youth pastors.
I […]

I never read this book in its first incarnation, so I thought it’d be well worth a look this time around.
I am about half way thru and finding it a decent read, even if it does caricature the established church somewhat. I find this practice somewhat tiring and attimes have considered just putting it back […]